Abstract
How did early modern artists such as Albrecht Dürer, Michelangelo, Benvenuto Cellini and Hendrick Goltzius deal with physical ailments? How did they perceive their illnesses? Did they portray themselves as sick? Did lack of recognition affect their health? And were there such things as occupational diseases and accidents at work? This article deals with the subject of physical illness among Italian, German and Dutch artists from the 15th through the 17th centuries. It examines how they thematized and reflected on their illnesses in images and texts; what significance they themselves, art theory, but also society attached to infirmity; what coping strategies can be discerned and in which way physical impairments affected the creation of artworks or were associated with them. The analysis thereby focuses on the stylization, staging and topicality of these written and visual sources. The aim of this study is to show that, instead of being merely a destructive force that drains creative power, the state of illness can likewise function as a moment of empowerment, a source of inspiration that boosts the artist’s creative output and underlines his heroic nature.
Über die Autorin: Jana Graul, Universität Hamburg
Editorial review
Rechte: CC-BY 4.0
Empfohlene Zitierweise: Jana Graul: „Kranke Künstler. Das kreative Potential körperlicher Leiden in der Frühen Neuzeit“, in: Kunst und Gebrechen, hg. v. Hildegard Fraueneder, Manfred Kern und Nora Grundtner, Wien: Sonderzahl 2024 (Figurationen des Übergangs 1), S. 75-135, DOI: 10.25598/transitionen-2024-i_4, <https://transition.hypotheses.org/4710>